Tuesday, March 12, 2013

Continuing
Three Way Fight’s series on the Greek neonazi party Golden Dawn, in
this post I offer a profile of Golden Dawn’s fascist ideology, based on
online writings from the party and its affiliated organizations (Women’s
Front, Youth Front, and Green Wing), which I have accessed using
Google’s Translate function. Although some of the auto-translation
results are garbled, many passages come through clearly and major points
are often repeated in different ways, so I believe the following is
reasonably accurate. (For Greek language sources, I have provided URLs
in the “Sources” section below, rather than hyperlinks.)

Golden
Dawn’s web offerings feature a familiar set of fascist ideological
themes, including aggressive and expansionist nationalism, a vision of
racial purity through purging alien groups and influences, a crude
anti-elitism based on scapegoating Jews, patriarchal traditionalism,
homophobia, closeness to nature, rejection of both capitalism and
communism, and a call for a strong state role in the economy and
society.

The party glorifies a militaristic approach to
politics. GD’s Youth Front blog, for example, declares “The People’s
Nationalism stands [for the] neglected Values of Honor, Duty, of ethics,
of Blood, discipline, power of will and self-improvement for Life and
finally the heroic lifestyle.” [1] And U.S. neonazi influences are
evident. The Youth Front posted a glowing tribute to Robert Mathews,
leader of The Order, who died in a 1984 shootout with U.S. federal
agents. [2] The Women’s Front blog main page features a version of the
“Fourteen Words” slogan coined by Order co-founder David Lane: “We must
ensure the existence of our race and the future of our children!” [3]

Against globalizationHistorian
Roger Griffin has argued that fascist ideology centers on a vision of
palingenesis, or collective rebirth out of a near-fatal crisis or
decline. This fits Golden Dawn well, as the party’s name suggests.
“Today the country is going through a deep crisis. [A] crisis of values
and ethics. [A] crisis economic, cultural and national” – a crisis
brought on mainly by globalization. “We do not believe in any
globalization and believe that this is the way for the subjugation of
all peoples of mankind in [the] global conspiracy that exists today.”
[4] GD cites damaging effects of economic globalization including “the
depopulation of the countryside, methodical destruction of agriculture,
closure of sugar factories, textiles and dozens of other productive
sectors related to agricultural production,” as well as the closing of
hundreds of factories and decline of the shipping industry. Because
“multinationals operate unchecked,” Greece has become dependent on
imports for 80 percent of food consumed, and cheap imports “create
fictitious and false needs.” [5]

GD also argues that “the system”
has brought about “commercialization of the arts and cultural
alienation of our people” through imposition of “outlandish American
subculture” and (presumably worse) even Turkish culture. These changes
are “aimed at discrediting the Greek civilization and [causing Greeks]
to forget their manners, customs and traditions of our nation.” [5]

The
part of globalization that upsets Golden Dawn the most is mass
immigration, which they regard as an attack on Greece’s cultural and
racial purity. “Millions of immigrants have invaded and continue to
invade our country unchecked… so in a few years the Greeks [will be] a
minority in our land…” The “international system of globalization” is
forcing Greece “to become multinational and multicultural…. Crime is now
rampant. Neglected infectious diseases reappear.” The party calls for
immediately arresting and deporting “all illegal immigrants” and
securing the country’s borders with antipersonnel mines. [5]

Anti-elitism and antisemitismGolden
Dawn says that Greece is “under occupation” – controlled by outside
forces. “The local corrupt political establishment, hooked to power,
executes all the commands of dependence and subordination selling out
[the] country.” [5] According to GD, real power is held by global
elites, who the party refers to more or less interchangeably as
“multinationals,” “capitalists,” “plutocracy,” [6] “predatory banking
system,” or “international moneylenders.” [7] These terms hint at the
classic fascist distinction between “productive” industrial capital and
“parasitic” finance capital, but from what I have seen Golden Dawn
doesn’t seem to develop this argument clearly. In any case, at the
center of the conspiracy is “the one and only ruler of nations: the
world Jewry.” [8]

The GD Youth Front argues that Jews use
globalization “to create people incapable, [with] no future, and to
eventually destroy humanity. Materialism will prevail and any value will
be erased permanently from the souls of men. The consumerism will reap
people and any resistance will immediately [be] suppressed.” [1] On GD’s
own website we are told that Zionism (Jewish nationalism) is trying “to
exterminate the ‘eternal’ enemy (the Greeks)” and that the Jewish lobby
in the U.S. is behind U.S. policy in the Eastern Mediterranean region,
which aims at “segmentation of the Greek State and the disappearance of
the Greek Nation.” Zionism, by accelerating globalization, “put the U.S.
on a slippery road [of] confrontation… with all nations of the earth.”
[9])

Beyond left and rightGolden Dawn
claims that “the political theories of bourgeois democracy, liberalism,
Marxism and capitalism …ultimately are creations of the Jews, who incite
the New World Order.” [1] Thus political left and political right are
two sides of the same coin. “The right and left solutions supposedly
fight each other, [but] it’s just theater[:] two partners who perpetuate
the dominance of cosmopolitan internationalist and anti-national and
anti-people forces.” [6] GD rejects both capitalism and communism as
“instruments of the Zionist world domination attempt.” [5] “The
oligarchy of money and [Bolshevik] party tyranny [are] the same. Enemies
of the Nation and the People.” [6] On one side, the free market is
“only the vehicle [of] internationalist capital, banks and
moneylenders.” Adam Smith’s “theory of the ‘invisible hand’” (the belief
that free markets channel selfish behavior into social benefits) has
been disproved, because on “one finger of the hand, [is a] shining gold
ring with the star of David!”

On the other side, the idea of
class struggle “is opposed to our vision for unity of the people in a
community of shared blood. The Bolsheviks did not believe in the reality
of race.” [10] “In contrast with the sweat and blood of the worker, the
leftists [have] the privileged status of rottenness and corruption.” In
addition, GD claims, the left actually aids the capitalists they claim
to be fighting. “While we are nationalists, [we have] argued from the
outset against the invasion of foreign workplaces, [while] the
unfortunate Marxists rushed to side on the side of smuggled migrants,
essentially serving the interests of capitalists…. Who was actually the
beneficiary of the massive invasion of foreign manpower in our country?
[It] was undoubtedly the class of capitalists…” [7]

Rebirth of the nationGolden
Dawn aims to restore the unity, purity, and independence of the Greek
nation. This involves not only purging foreigners, getting rid of
corrupt politicians, and freeing Greece from the control of
international moneylenders. The “ultimate aim” is to form “a new society
and a new type of man” through “a radical renewal of the obsolete and
counterfeit social values.” To GD, “nationalism is the only absolute and
true revolution because it seeks [a] new birth [of] ethical, spiritual,
social and mental values.” [6]

Golden Dawn’s “policy line is
that the national interest stands above anything else…” [4] This means
subordinating the individual to the nation. “It is important to society,
the whole community of the People, not the person…. A person can only
be one person who completes the socialization through capability, as [a]
harmonious composition of social and individual values. This superior
type of person is a new kind of person who seeks to realize
nationalism.” [6]

Golden Dawn nationalism celebrates Greek
culture as an outgrowth of Greeks’ racial heritage. “Tradition, the
History of Law of our Nation and the Idea of Hellenism are the supreme
values through which we experience the world and approach the concept of
culture.” “We believe in a new Greek culture based on [the] great and
eternal tradition of our race. We believe in a Greek way of life against
the vile and vulgar outlandish customs.” [4] “Our way is the way of
natural law: because Nature herself stated that Greek blood will be the
most complete, most crystallized and perfect expression of human
culture!” [10] “Nobody can refute the eternal natural law, no one can
refute the Law of Blood!” [7] In this framework, “racial mixing is
unacceptable, and almost always leads to disorder, mental illness, due
to the destructive combination of inherited mental gifts, resulting in
the destruction of human nature.” [1]

Women's dutyGolden
Dawn proclaims “the importance of family and the value of motherhood.”
Having babies is women's duty to the nation, in that “More children
means more Greek[s], more opportunities for progression and creativity,
more power to prevent any foreign conspiracy.” [8] When the party
advocates services for women, such as more childcare centers or “support
for single mothers to prevent abortion,” it is mainly to support their
function as mothers. Similarly, the head of Golden Dawn's Women's Front,
Eugenia Christou, said, "We want women to be educated because those
will nurture their children, who are the hope and future of this
country." [11]

At the same time, GD argues that traditional roles
are a source of strength and pride for Greek women, in contrast to
global culture's consumerism, sexual exploitation, and racial dangers.
Declaring that women should not be treated as a "pleasure vessel or
object," Christou proclaimed, “In today’s society, dominated by the
standards of prostitution, where the role of the mother has become
obsolete and has been replaced by superficial values, Women of the
Golden Dawn, dynamic and informed about the nature of the female sex,
strongly assert a healthy standard.” [11] A GD Women's Front blog post
about a women's self-defense course explains, "our members were taught
how with simple movements [they] can protect themselves, as attacks
against women by hordes of illegal immigrants have already become a
daily occurrence…. The course is for Greeks only.” [12]

Nature and traditionLike
the original Nazi party before them, Golden Dawn emphasizes closeness
to nature. The party has an environmentalist affiliate organization
called Green Wing, whose blog features articles about recycling, organic
farming, the blight of strip mall construction, and traditional ways of
harvesting olives. [13] Green Wing frames such concerns in a
nationalist context. “Man is and should be in direct contact with nature
and the natural environment. The rupture of this bond [through]
urbanization leads to a decline in[to] a vulgar way of life, this
American, cosmopolitan lifestyle away from their ancestral homes and
Nature.” [14]

Taking this a step further, Green Wing has also
promoted eugenics. In 2007 their blog reprinted an article by J.
Bauge-Prevost on “Biopolitics and Eugenics,” which argued that “The
hereditary burdened people [such] as paranoid, the mentally retarded,
the schizophrenic, epileptic, carriers of mutated genes, incurable
alcoholics, advanced drug addicts and others should [be] sterilized.”
The same article listed “homosexuality, the degenerate marriages, racial
intermarriage, [and] wild consumerism” along with “the soiling of the
environment” as threats to the white race. [15]A strong stateGolden
Dawn's website refers to their ideal of the purified and unified nation
as “the People’s State” or “the secular state.” “For the People
nationalism is not only a numerical unity of people but a qualitative
synthesis of people with the same biological and spiritual heritage,
which is the source of all creation and expresses its power in the
People’s State[:] the only state that can express the people as an
organic whole and spiritual living.” “In [the] secular state there is no
social stratification based on income-economic classes. The popular
classes are collaborating organic[ally], other groups of people with
special abilities and production skills each. Just like in a living
body. The different systems contribute harmoniously and in full
cooperation for their survival.” [6]

The People’s or secular
state will be “a fair state where everybody is equal before the law and
where the law is respected by all.” [4] But this formal equality will
allow true, natural inequality to express itself. “The People’s State of
Nationalism [that] delivers social equality of opportunity is grounded
in meritocracy and [does] not ignore the law of diversity and difference
in nature. Respecting the spiritual, ethnic and racial inequality of
men can build egalitarian society and law.” [6] Specifically, “the Armed
Forces and the people of Culture and Education” represent “a natural
aristocracy.” “In our state they will be the leaders and guides of the
nation and not the cunning politicians or government-nouveau riche
plutocrats.” [4] (The reference to the Armed Forces as natural leaders
of Greece evokes the rightist military dictatorship of 1967-1974, whose
former leaders helped inspire Nikolaos Michaloliakos to found the Golden
Dawn party.)

Golden Dawn advocates a strong state role in the
economy. “As there can be no strong economy without private initiative,
so it can not exist without public sector. The strategic sectors of the
economy [should be] controlled by the national state.” [5] Further, “the
state should control private property so that it is not dangerous for
the survival of the People or can manipulate [the People].” [6] They
want to nationalize those banks that have received bailout funds and
merge them into a strong national bank, whose income will be invested in
domestic production to make Greece self-sufficient. They also want debt
relief for low-income people and “specialized programs to support
workers, Motherhood, vulnerable groups and youth.” But at the same time,
Golden Dawn also calls for a “dramatic reduction of government
expenditure,” to be achieved by reducing the salaries of MPs,
expenditures on parliament and the presidency, and cutting funding for
political parties and NGOs. [5]

Foreign policyGolden
Dawn calls for an aggressive and expansionist foreign policy. “We
denounce the abandonment of Northern Epirus [part of Albania], the
constant retreats in Cyprus, Macedonia, [and] Aegean Thrace...” [4]
“Macedonia is our land since ancient Greek times…. Today, some parts of
it remain outside the National Backbone and Greeks living there [are]
methodically persecuted.” GD wants political autonomy for Northern
Epirus and Greek citizenship for ethnic Greeks living there. They
declare that “Cyprus is Greece” and call for the liberation of occupied
Cyprus from Turkish rule. They also want to expand Greek territorial
waters to 12 nautical miles, “close the Turkish consulate and [deport]
agents of Ankara.” [5]

* * *

Golden
Dawn’s website and blogs offer a relatively traditional form of fascist
ideology, not that different from what was common in the 1920s and
1930s. Like many current-day fascists, GD has adapted old themes to fit
new circumstances – thus the rejection of globalization and the
scapegoating of immigrants. Golden Dawn has apparently not gone in for
any of the more systematic reworkings of fascist ideology, such as Alain
de Benoist’s ethno-pluralism, Julius Evola’s racial mysticism, Lyndon
LaRouche’s esoteric conspiracy theories, or Troy Southgate’s national
anarchism. GD is also not significantly influenced by national
bolshevism, Strasserism, or any other avowedly anti-capitalist variants
of fascism. Although one of their articles proclaims Golden Dawn’s “own
real socialism,” all this amounts to is providing a Greek-only
employment agency, emergency food distribution, and a blood bank. [7]

Golden
Dawn advocates a rightist revolution against Greece’s established
political and cultural order, but it bolsters capitalist economic power
through its attacks on the left and large sections of the working class,
and by channeling many people’s frustration and rage at the economic
crisis into anti-immigrant bigotry and violence. I agree with
clandestina that here “capitalism uses fascism, as it also has in the
past,” but I’m skeptical of their claim that the rise of Golden Dawn (“a
seemingly ‘militant’ fascist organization”) was simply part of a
campaign manufactured by the ruling class. Yes, there are close ties
between Golden Dawn and the police, but that doesn’t explain the genuine
popular support for the party or address the question of possible
divisions within the ruling class or the state.

Similarly, I
agree with "9 Theses on the Golden Dawn..." that Golden Dawn stands with
one foot “in increasing totalitarianism, mafia and violence” but not
that its other foot is in “neoliberal rationalism.” Arguing that the
free market is a tool of Jewish power and that “the state should control
private property so that it is not dangerous for the survival of the
People” is flatly at odds with neoliberalism. It seems more likely that
Golden Dawn is aligned with sections of the Greek ruling class that are
resisting neoliberal demands from the European Union and global capital.

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About

Contact: southsideara (at) riseup.net

TORCH Points of Unity:

1. We disrupt fascist and far right organizing and activity.

2. We don’t rely on the cops or courts to do our work for us. This
doesn’t mean we never go to court, but the cops uphold white supremacy
and the status quo. They attack us and everyone who resists oppression.
We must rely on ourselves to protect ourselves and stop the fascists.

3. We oppose all forms of oppression and exploitation. We intend to do
the hard work necessary to build a broad, strong movement of oppressed
people centered on the working class against racism, sexism, nativism,
anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, homophobia, transphobia, and discrimination
against the disabled, the oldest, the youngest, and the most oppressed
people. We support abortion rights and reproductive freedom. We want a
classless, free society. We intend to win!

4. We hold ourselves accountable personally and collectively to live up to our ideals and values.

5. We not only support each other within the network, but we also
support people outside the network who we believe have similar aims or
principles. An attack against one is an attack against all.